D Dhanuraj, Chairman of CPPR, comments on the news “KMRL mulls extending Metro line to GIFT City“. The news was published in The Times of India on 17th May 2023.

Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL) is considering a proposal to extend the proposed Metro line from Aluva to Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL), to further northeast area to provide connectivity to the proposed GIFT City at Ayyampuzha.

The comprehensive mobility plan (CMP) to identify a suitable model for the different proposals for Metro lines in the city is expected to be readied by this month-end. KMRL will take further steps regarding the GIFT City extension according to the CMP.

Industries minister P Rajeev said Metro and road connectivity are necessary to attract investors and government is actively considering the extension of Kochi Metro to GIFT City site, under the central government’s PM Gati Shakti infrastructure development project.“After completing the land acquisition procedures for GIFT City, the Centre and the state government would form a joint venture company for implementing the project. Then, we will submit a detailed proposal regarding the Metro extension to the Centre,” Rajeeve said.

KMRL MD Loknath Behera said the details of the project can be decided only after the CMP gets finalized.

GIFT City is a key component of the Kochi-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor project under the National Industrial Corridor Development and Implementation Trust. The project is coming up on 360 acres in Ayyampuzha panchayat near Angamaly. The area is located around 15km away from Cial.

The state government has almost completed the procedures to acquire 360 acres of land required for the project. As the compensation amount has been increased to Rs 850 crore, the project needed a revised approval from KIIFB and different departments.

The minister said the acquisition process would be completed by September this year and Kinfra has started the process to prepared the detailed project report (DPR) of the GIFT City project.

D Dhanuraj of Centre for Public Policy and Research (CPPR), an independent public policy think tank, said the government should conduct a detailed study on the necessity of Metro connectivity to the proposed industrial area. “There are Metro lines to the industrial areas in many cities like Delhi. However, it is better to conduct a study on the possibility of success of the project,” he said.